Cervical collar

ABSTRACT

A cervical collar that will hold the chin, neck and head of the wearer in an anatomically neutral position when the wearer is in an upright or nearly upright position.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The field of this invention is cervical collars.

[0003] Specifically, this invention pertains to a cervical collar thatis designed for use by travelers or others who want to be able to sleepwhile sitting up.

[0004] 2. Background

[0005] Even the infrequent flyer has experienced the followingsituation. After a long day in an unfamiliar time zone, she has to rushto the airport to make the last flight home. Tired, harried and stressedout, she finally makes her way through the rush hour traffic, throughthe long lines at check-in and baggage inspection, through the crowds ofpeople coming and going, and finally gets on the plane. The plane isfull, and she has a center seat in coach class. Shortly after the planelifts off, she reclines her seat but finds it doesn't recline very far,certainly not far enough to be really comfortable, and she can't lean toone side or the other without bumping into the stranger next to her.Still, she is so tired that puts her head back as far as she can andfalls fast asleep. One of two things typically happens at this point.Once she falls deeply asleep, her neck no longer holds the heavy weightof her head up, so she either awakens when her head slumps forward or tothe side, or, she is so tired and falls so deeply asleep that shedoesn't awaken when her head slumps, but awakens some time later with aseverely stiff neck (or even worse, a strained neck). Neither situationis enjoyable.

[0006] This situation is not restricted to airplanes and airplanetravel. The fact is that the human head is heavy, and holding it erectrequires much more neck muscle strength that healthy people realize. Butin hospitals and convalescent hospitals, it is common to see people whoare sitting up but cannot keep their heads erect, even if they areawake. People in convalescent hospitals often spend most of their dayssitting in wheel chairs, alternatively dozing. Just like the airplanetraveler described above, their heads droop, sometimes to a dangerousdegree, when they do sleep.

[0007] For these reasons, small, usually inflatable travel pillows are astaple in catalogs directed to the frequent traveler. These areinvariably horseshoe-shaped pillows that provide some cushioning on thesides and in the back, but not in the front. However, once the personfalls asleep the head is as likely to slump forward as to the side,particularly in situations where the person cannot recline very far.Moreover, when that happens, the person's cervical spine is placed in apotentially harmful state of hyperflexion.

[0008] Therefore, there exists a need in the art for an improvedcervical collar than can be used by those people who want to, or needto, sleep while in a substantially upright position, that will keep theperson's head “floating” in an anatomically neutral position above theneck while they sleep.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0009] The collar herein disclosed is designed to fit entirely aroundthe persons head and neck—the back, both sides and under the chin—andincludes an elongated portion in the front (that is, the portion thatwill be under the person's chin) that in use extends from the undersideof the person's chin to the person's chest so that the chin ismaintained during sleep in the anatomically neutral position.

[0010] In the preferred embodiment, the sides and back of the collar aresubstantially rectangular in cross section. In another embodiment, therear of the collar (that is, the portion that will be under the back ofthe person's head) is also elongated so as to rest against the person'sback during use.

[0011] In another embodiment, the collar is openable in the front, andhas a Velcro® type attachment to secure the device in place during use.

[0012] In another embodiment, the center opening of the device issomewhat angled, being narrower at the bottom and larger at the top, tomore closely fit the contour of the person's neck and lower head.

[0013] Therefore, an improved cervical collar for use during sleep in asubstantially upright position is disclosed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014]FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of one embodiment of the devicein its closed position, as it would be when worn by the user, alsoshowing the closure device on its front.

[0015]FIG. 2 is a side perspective view showing the device in the openedposition before being inserted around the user's neck.

[0016]FIG. 3 is a cross-section (taken along line 3-3 in FIG. 1) showingthe substantially rectangular cross sectional construction of the back(and sides) of the device, and how the rear portion of the deviceextends slightly down to contact the user's back in one embodiment.

[0017]FIG. 4 is a cross-section (taken along line 4-4 in FIG. 1)showingthe slightly tapered interior opening of the device in one embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0018] Referring to FIG. 1, the device is shown in its closed positionas it would be during use. In this preferred embodiment, the device isalmost entirely of one-piece construction, comprising the body 10 andthe closure device 12 attached thereto. The body 10 can be manufacturedas an inflatable device, that is an air bladder having a selectivelyopenable and closable air tube (not shown) for inflating and deflatingthe device to the desired firmness, and for entirely deflating thedevice for storage. Or it can be manufactured from conventional softmaterial such as foam rubber or other suitably soft, non-toxic anddurable material. Or it can be manufactured like a conventional pillowhaving an outer fabric or plastic material stuffed with any conventionalmaterial from feathers to beans to rice hulls. The device can also befitted with a removable outer cover (not shown) that could be removedfor washing, then refitted over the body 10. In that case, of course,the closure device 12 would have to be attached to the cover rather thanto the body 10 itself.

[0019] The body 10 in the preferred embodiment is in a substantiallyround, donut-like configuration, having a central aperture 14, aninterior surface 16, a bottom surface 18, a back section 20, two sidesections 22 a and 22 b, upper section 24, and a front section 26 that issplit down the middle thereof to form centered opening 28. In thisembodiment, the upper section 24 is shown as being substantially flat.That, of course, is a matter of design choice. It could also be slightlyor substantially rounded, for example. Also, the exterior configurationof the preferred embodiment is substantially circular in shape. Theexterior configuration could be of other shapes as well, such assquared, rectangular, triangular, hexangonal, etc.

[0020] As seen in FIG. 1, the front section 26 has an elongated portion30 that extends downwardly a sufficient distance so that the upperportion 32 of the front section 26 will contact the underside of theuser's chin and the lower end of the elongated portion 30 will rest onthe user's chest so as to hold the person's chin and head in theanatomically neutral position. For most people, the desired distancebetween the upper portion 32 and the lower end of the elongated portion30 will be between 6 and 7 inches.

[0021] In this embodiment, the rear portion 20 and the side portions 22a and 22 b are of substantially the same dimensions. For most people,the preferred dimensions are about 3 inches wide (that is, the width ofthe upper section 24) and about 4 inches top to bottom (that is, fromupper section 24 to bottom section 18). The central aperture 14 ispreferably about 5 to 6 inches in diameter, and the overall width of thedevice, front to back is about 12 inches. The elongated front portion 30tapers down from the side portion 22 a and 22 b over a distance of about3 to 4 inches in the preferred embodiment.

[0022]FIG. 2 shows another embodiment of the invention in which the rearportion 20 has a downwardly extending section 40 that is designed andconstructed so that the top or rear portion 20 contacts the back of theuser's head and neck area, and the downwardly extending section 40 willcontact the user's back so as to maintain the head and neck in theanatomically neutral position during use. This embodiment is shown incross-section in FIG. 3. Alternatively or in addition, the upper portionof the rear section 20 could be elevated slightly (not shown).

[0023] In yet another embodiment, shown in cross-section in FIG. 4, theinterior surface 16 is slightly contoured or tapered so as to conformmore closely to the shape of the transitional area between the usershead and neck.

[0024] Any and all of these aspects of the different embodiments showncan be included in the device as ultimately constructed and used.

[0025] The preferred embodiment of the closure device 12 is a stap thatis sewn (or attached by other conventional means) at one end to one sideof the front portion 26, and is attachable at its other end to the otherside of front portion 26 by any conventional means (such as Velcro®, abutton and button hole, a snap or a magnet, for example) so as to holdthe two sides of front portion 26 together during use.

[0026] While different embodiments have been shown and described, itwill be apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention is notlimited to the specific devices shown, but is of the full breadth andscope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A cervical collar having a front section, sidesections, and a back section, all defining a central aperture, in whichthe front section of the collar has a downwardly extending elongatedportion, all designed and constructed so as to hold the chin, head andneck of the wearer of the collar in an anatomically neutral positionduring use.
 2. The device of claim 1 in which the front section of thecollar is split down the middle so as to form an opening to allow easyapplication of the device.
 3. The device of claim 1 in which the deviceis of unified construction.
 4. The device of claim 2 in which the deviceis of unified construction.
 5. The device of claim 1 in which the devicecomprises an inflatable and deflatable air bladder, having an openableand closable air tube for inflating the device to the desired firmness,and deflating the device for storage.
 6. The device of claim 2 in whichthe device comprises an inflatable and deflatable air bladder, having anopenable and closable air tube for inflating the device to the desiredfirmness, and deflating the device for storage.
 7. The device of claim 2including means for securing the device in a closed position.
 8. Thedevice of claim 7 in which the closure means comprises a strap that isselectively attachable to both sides of the front section.
 9. The deviceof claim 8 in which the strap is sewn on one side of the front section,and attachable to the other side of the front section by conventionalmeans, such as Velcro®, button, snap or magnet.
 10. The device of claim1 in which the rear section has a downwardly extending portion.
 11. Thedevice of claim 1 in which the rear section has an upwardly extendingportion.
 12. The device of claim 2 in which the rear section has adownwardly extending portion.
 13. The device of claim 2 in which therear section has an upwardly extending portion.
 14. The device of claim1 in which the collar also comprises an upper portion that issubstantially flat.
 15. The device of claim 1 in which the collar alsocomprises an upper portion that is substantially rounded.
 16. The deviceof claim 2 in which the collar also comprises an upper portion that issubstantially flat.
 17. The device of claim 2 in which the collar alsocomprises an upper portion that is substantially rounded.
 18. The deviceof claim 1 in which the central aperture is tapered, being narrower atthe bottom and wider at the top.
 19. The device of claim 2 in which thecentral aperture is tapered, being narrower at the bottom and wider atthe top.
 20. The device of claim 1 in which the exterior configurationof the overall device is substantially circular.
 21. The device of claim2 in which the exterior configuration of the overall device issubstantially circular.
 22. The device of claim 1 in which the exteriorconfiguration of the overall device is substantially rectangular. 23.The device of claim 2 in which the exterior configuration of the overalldevice is substantially rectangular.
 24. A cervical collar comprising:a) a donut-like configuration having a back section, two side sections,and a front section, all defining a central aperture; b) said frontsection being split to provide an opening to allow easy application ofthe collar; c) said front section have a downwardly extending frontportion; d) said rear section having a downwardly extending rearportion; e) said central aperture being slightly tapered, smaller at thebottom and larger on the top; and f) means for holding the two side ofsaid split front section together during use.